Article excerpt

'Toy Story 2,' 'Stuart Little,' and 'The Green Mile' are among
the favorite films this holiday season, but what about the rest of
the year? Aside from reviewing almost every 1999 release, this guide
is full of features like the family films (page B5), the results of
our reader-favorites poll (B8), and the surprise hits (B12). Start
below, where critic David Sterritt picks his Top 10. And now, sit
back and enjoy our feature presentation ...

STAR RATINGS

David Sterritt Monitor panel Meaning

**** **** Excellent

*** *** Good

** ** Fair

* * Poor

DUD DUD The Worst

Red stars denote the reviews of Monitor movie critic David
Sterritt unless otherwise noted. Ratings and comments by the Monitor
panel (blue stars) reflect the sometimes diverse views of at least
three other moviegoers. Information on violence, drugs, sex/nudity,
and profanity is compiled by the Monitor panel.

Motion picture Association of America ratings are as follows:

G General Audiences: All ages admitted.

PG Parental Guidance: Some material may not be suitable for
children.

PG-13 Parents Strongly Cautioned: Some material may be
inappropriate for children under 13.

Three stories of working-class life in Scotland, focusing largely
on drugs, degradation, and despair. Two of the tales veer into
fantasy that partly defuses their unhappy atmosphere, but the
central episode is a powerful melodrama. In Scottish dialect
with English subtitles

Elmo has lost his blanket, and nothing can deter him from getting
it back from a villain named Huxley (Patinkin). The musical numbers
are cute and catchy, though they can be a bit rowdy in typical
Sesame Street fashion. The characters are endearing. Children will
learn lessons in sharing and how to find courage in sometimes scary
situations. By Katherine Dillin

The setting of this gentle Japanese allegory is a homely old
building where newly deceased people are asked to choose their most
valued memory. The premise seems strained at first, but the fantasy
builds delicate emotional power as it explores the lives and wishes
of its ghostly "movie producers" as well as the people they're
trying to serve. …

MandyPatinkin Tells His Story in Song from Sondheim Musicals to Dramatic TV Roles, the Versatile Singer-Actor Keeps Adding to His Long List of CreditsFrank Scheck,.
The Christian Science Monitor, July 11, 1994